Cal Fire RQ-7B UAV (1/35)

frank2056 · July 02, 2022, 05:31:53 PM

I decided to build the Academy 1/35 U.S. ARMY RQ-7B UAV. The model went together fairly well. The main gear struts are delicate - both broke off at different times and in different places; you can see the repairs in the underside views. Once the kit was finished and in a coat of gray, I was underwhelmed with the marking choices.

Living in California, fire season starts in July. I wondered what if the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection AKA CAL FIRE borrowed some RQ-7B UAVs for fire spotting; after all, they have IR cameras. CAL FIRE aircraft are white and red, but maybe a UAV would need high viz markings, especially if it's on a borrowed/trial basis.

I used a 50:50 mix of Vallejo fluorescent orange and Vallejo orange for the tail and wing tips. Most fluorescent paints are a PITA to work with, so I thought mixing it with orange would both tone it down slightly and make it easier to work with. Overall, it worked although I noticed some gumming in my airbrush at the very end, which seems to be common with many acrylic fluorescent paints; they're almost like latex.

I gave the UAV some slight weathering.

I was going to add a CAL FIRE decal, but it didn't print properly - so it only has the text and a California flag on the tail:

The underside is similar:

The decals in this kit are thick and laugh at setting solutions - the prop warning decal (barely visible in these pictures) eventually soften with some Solvaset. I still had to brush on Future, wait for it to dry and sand off the protruding edges.

The side view, with the year and date as the serial number:

The main change from a standard RQ-7B is the metal vs wood prop.

With a figure, for scale:

I used Tamiya interference film for the camera's optical window:

The effect is easier to see in this picture:

The kit comes with two figures, but they seem to have been sculpted by the Trumpeter figure department, which is - as we know - composed of extra-terrestrials with only a rudimentary understanding of the human form. They don't fit well and don't look good when put together. Some of the body parts may be usable when mixed and matched with better figures.

Thanks for looking!

Wardukw · July 02, 2022, 07:51:21 PM

Bloody lovely little build Frank

and i love the Fire department angle too..it would be perfect for the job too

kerick · July 02, 2022, 07:53:37 PM

That really looks nice!! US Forest Service would be another good choice if someone else were to build one.

I wonder how hard it would be to make a replacement part out of metal to prevent the breakage of the main gear. It resembles the main gear on a Cessna O-2 Skymaster in 1/48th I have in the drawer of doom. IIRC the real Skymaster had basically one piece main gear that also served as the suspension system made of one piece of spring steel that went in one side of the fuselage and out the other. I'm imagining a piece of aluminium in an airfoil shape bent in a curve. I should try that with the Skymaster since the main gear is broke anyway. Did anyone fly Skymasters/O-2s to spot fires?

Wardukw · July 02, 2022, 08:02:06 PM

Quote from: kerick on July 02, 2022, 07:53:37 PM
That really looks nice!! US Forest Service would be another good choice if someone else were to build one.

I wonder how hard it would be to make a replacement part out of metal to prevent the breakage of the main gear. It resembles the main gear on a Cessna O-2 Skymaster in 1/48th I have in the drawer of doom. IIRC the real Skymaster had basically one piece main gear that also served as the suspension system made of one piece of spring steel that went in one side of the fuselage and out the other. I'm imagining a piece of aluminium in an airfoil shape bent in a curve. I should try that with the Skymaster since the main gear is broke anyway. Did anyone fly Skymasters/O-2s to spot fires?

Its wouldnt surprise me if they did at some point Kerick mate..their bloody good aircraft and did very well in Vietnam .
As for your bird and if i could ever get my hands on one id replace the land gear with curved stainless steel flat bar..hard to work with but very strong and then epoxy putty it to give it its foil shape ..yup a bit extreme but brass that thin would be to weak.

kerick · July 02, 2022, 08:15:42 PM

I just had a useful thought. (Gold star on my calendar!) What about the rim around the top of an aluminum beverage can? Its partly bent to shape already and can be bent with simple tools to the final shape. Then complete the airfoil shape with epoxy putty like you said. I might just have to dig out that old Skymaster and have a look.

Flyer · July 02, 2022, 08:16:55 PM

Every fire season we have one sometimes two Skymaster's based locally here, as spotter's and/or director's.

frank2056 · July 02, 2022, 11:28:43 PM

Thanks, guys!
I thought about replacing the landing gear strut with a strip of either brass or aluminum from a can, cut to shape but the build was moving along at a good pace and going back to fix the problem would have made the project grind to a halt.

The strut is a single strip (except for where the wheels attach) with a flat mid section that is covered by a box, then a simple curve out the wheels. I have another kit on order and I'll try it out. If anyone builds this kit, it would be a simple change that should improve the durability of the model.

Wardukw · July 02, 2022, 11:50:56 PM

Kerick mate the stainless steel was the engineer in me

The soda can idea is a bloody good one and well worth a try and what ever flavor ya like you get the can too

and hell if ya dont try ..ya dont know

zenrat · July 03, 2022, 04:40:16 AM

Good job. Smaller than I expected.

NARSES2 · July 03, 2022, 06:21:35 AM

Terrific Build

Quote from: zenrat on July 03, 2022, 04:40:16 AM
Smaller than I expected.

Very much so

PR19_Kit · July 03, 2022, 07:56:05 AM

Looks just like it was an R/C model.

Rick Lowe · July 03, 2022, 04:59:45 PM

Nice job there, and yeah - smaller than I imagined. Though as it's a spotter, rather than carrying ordnance, that's logical.

I used a paper clip, with plastic cladding, for the 1/48 Testors O-2 I built - a bit of a pain, but I could see a myriad of problems/breakages/repairs if I'd used the kit part...
I used that option as I didn't have any brass strip, or the tools with which to work it...

frank2056 · July 03, 2022, 05:08:23 PM

I thought of adding smoke bombs for fire spotting - (drop it in the fire, so it doesn't add to the problem) but the payload capacity of the RQ-7 line is pretty small and it has weather limitations as well. If this were a real life application, it wouldn't be flying through smoke clouds or in very windy weather - it is after all, a big RC plane.

Wardukw · July 04, 2022, 12:14:26 AM

As a rc plane flyer dude what i used to play with is exactly the same as these drones ..no matter how big or how small theres some bloke or blokette whos playing with a transmitter .
Im just glad mine cost a whole lot less than the military stuff.

Flyer · July 04, 2022, 01:54:18 AM

Quote from: Wardukw-NZ on July 04, 2022, 12:14:26 AM
As a rc plane flyer dude what i used to play with is exactly the same as these drones ..no matter how big or how small theres some bloke or blokette whos playing with a transmitter .
Im just glad mine cost a whole lot less than the military stuff.

Seen a news report a few weeks back about the basic equipment found in some of the downed Russian drones, make's me think that my stuff cost a whole lot more than some of their military stuff!